Proclaim ‘15 is your opportunity

2015-07-07 14:39

What were you doing on 2 May 1980
when thousands of people headed to Liverpool for the National Pastoral
Congress, then described as “the most important events in the history of the
Catholic Church in England and Wales since the restoration of diocesan bishops
in 1850”. In case your memory is rusty, there were seven three-day conferences,
each accommodating approximately 300 people, distributed around various centres
in Liverpool. The crypt of the Metropolitan Cathedral was crammed with
exhibitions of every aspect of Catholic life. As for the Congress itself, the
amazing opening Mass had an “added extra” in the form of a recorded message
from Pope John Paul II. The National Pastoral Congress was intended to be a
catalyst for future pastoral action throughout England and Wales.

35 years later, the world has
changed considerably. The Church is engaged in a process of new evangelisation:
taking the gospel to people who have never encountered Jesus, to those who met
him and continued on a different path and to others, whose longing is to fan their
faith into an even brighter flame.

Proclaim ‘15 is both part of the
legacy of the visit of Pope Benedict XVI to the UK in 2010 and an initiative
inspired by the ability of Pope Francis to reach out to all people using their
own language.

As representatives of every
diocese in the country converge on Birmingham on 11 July, Redemptorist
Publications will also be there!

Our mission is to take the gospel
out into the marketplace of humanity, supporting the Church through publishing
material which also speaks to people in their own language and situation. If Proclaim
‘15 is to create a roadmap for the future, we want to be there, at the
coalface!

You will already know the names
of some of the workshop leaders and event organisers at Proclaim ‘15 because
you will have read their books, which we published: David Wells, author of The Reluctant Disciple and The Grateful Disciple; Elizabeth Davies,
who wroteBeing a Catholic Mother and Fr Paul Cannon and Sharon Beech of Welcome to Witness fame.

Proclaim ‘15 is your opportunity
to buy your own copy of these books and others by making a point of visiting
our stand. In any case, whether or not you make a purchase, we would really
like to have the opportunity to say hello.

Redemptorist Publications would
like to take this opportunity to pray for the success of Proclaim 2015. May God
grant that the conference will energise and inspire the Church in England and
Wales. May its clear and exciting message build a hope-filled 21st-century
in which God is truly the “King and centre of our hearts”.